Diocese Knew of Possible Concealment Charges: Inquiry

By Ian Kirkwood
The Newcastle Herald
July 11, 2013

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1631380/diocese-knew-of-possible-concealment-charges-inquiry/?cs=303

A LETTER tendered to today’s Special Commission of Inquiry hearings shows the Maitland-Newcastle diocese should have known police in two states were considering ‘‘misprision of felony’’ charges over the concealment of child sex offences by priests.

The letter, dating from January 1996, was addressed to senior diocese figure Monsignor Allan Hart.

Bishop Michael Malone, whose 16 years at the head of the diocese began the year before, agreed with counsel assisting the inquiry, Julia Lonergan, that such a letter should have been drawn to his attention, but he ‘‘didn’t remember’’ seeing it before the current investigations.

This letter was one of a number tendered to the commission on Thursday that concerned the investigation of priests accused of child sexual abuse.

Bishop Malone was asked about a file note that he agreed was in his handwriting that showed he had been told about abuse of a boy by paedophile priest Denis McAlinden that ran for about 10 years from the time the boy was seven years old.

In the note, Bishop Malone wrote that he advised the person – a relative of the victim – to go to the police, although the note showed he told the person that other victims had not.

Bishop Malone said he did not know if the complainant went to the police.

He said he did not invite the person to come to the diocese, saying: ‘‘Once I’d referred her to the police I thought that would be the end of the matter from my point of view.’’

Asked if the matter would be on the McAlinden file, he said ‘‘it would be’’.

Although he did say in earlier evidence today that he had looked at some priest files – although not in depth – Bishop Malone said he could not recall accessing the file of a jailed priest, Father Vince Ryan.

Asked whether he had accessed the file, Bishop Malone said: ‘‘Subsequently I would have addded huge amounts of paper to it.’’

Bishop Malone agreed his early handling of child sexual abuse by his priests was ‘‘not adequate’’ early on, although he had what Ms Lonergan called ‘‘an epiphany’’ later on.

Bishop Malone said ‘‘the lights went on for me’’ at about the time the NSW Ombudsman became involved in 2003.

In another section of evidence, Bishop Malone was asked whether he thought of contacting the police directly about McAlinden, rather than leaving it in the hands of a person at the Catholic Professional Standards Office, as he said he had.

Bishop Malone said he also rang the professional standards office, as well as having a letter sent.

Asked why statements of victims AK and AL were not provided to police, Bishop Malone said there was ‘‘no need’’ for this, because they could have subpoaened documents or looked through the files at the diocese office, had they wanted to.

Ms Lonergan asked: ‘‘The file in your office? The one you hadn’t looked through?’’

Bishop Malone: ‘‘Yes.’’

The hearing continues this afternoon.

?EARLIER TODAY:

BISHOP Michael Malone has continued to justify a decision not to go to the police in 1995 over the McAlinden case, even though the laicisation or defrocking of McAlinden was doomed to failure.

Bishop Malone said he knew McAlinden was operating as a priest in the Philippines and was taking confession after he admitted his paedophilia to Church figures.

He said with hindsight it would have been better to go to the police but two victims who had made complaints to the Church about McAlinden, AK and AL, had not wanted the police involved.

After justifying his decision to stick with Canon processes at the time, Bishop Malone then said that McAlinden's claim he could deal with his paedophilia by prayer was "quite ridiculous".

"It's a psychological condition," Bishop Malone said of McAlinden's tendencies.

This morning's session has also canvassed the arrest of another paedophile priest, Vince Ryan.

This happened in late 1995 as Bishop Malone was taking over from his predecessor Bishop Leo Clarke.

Bishop admits looking at McAlinden's file

BISHOP Michael Malone has now acknowledged looking at Denis McAlinden's personnel file although not in depth.

Resuming his evidence at the special commission of Inquiry in Newcastle on Thursday, Bishop Malone said he had looked at the paedophile priest's file in the early days of his time as Bishop from 1995.

On Wednesday Bishop Malone said he had not looked at any of his priests' files despite repeated questions from counsel assisting, Julia Lonergan.

Today, Bishop Malone acknowledged looking at McAlindens file but he said more than once that he could not recall what he saw, or that he was a little vague about what it was that he saw at the time.

This morning's session has heard that the catholic church's insurers had written to all bishops in the mid 1990s asking them for information about any sex cases involving priests.

Bishop Malone believed he had also made efforts to contact the police about McAlinden in 1999 by going through the Catholic Church's professional standards committee which had offered to act as a conduit in such matters.

Counsel for the police Pat Saidi objected to this evidence, arguing that Bishop Malone could not know that the police had actually been informed.

Commissioner Margaret Cunneen allowed it to stand, saying that was the bishop's understanding of events.

The hearing continues.